1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to apparatus for making and transporting stacks of foil sections, in particular, plastic bags, comprising a stack conveying device for step-wise conveyance of the foil sections stacked on wicketing pins on the stacking conveying device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Apparatus of this kind are known, for example, from German Offenlegungsschrift (published patent application) 2,332,925, German Utility Model 8,128,146, German Patent 3,138,221 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,252,233 and 3,555,977, wherein both individual pins and, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,555,977, the legs of U-shaped brackets are used as wicketing pins.
From, for example, German Utility Model 8,128,146 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,252,233, it is known to provide in this apparatus:
a stacking station; a row of interconnected transport members; a pair of wicketing pins on each transport member for placing the foil sections thereon in the stacking station, thereby to form the stacks; a drive for driving in a step-wise manner the row of transport members, thereby to form a stack conveying device; and a take-off station for taking the stacks off the stack conveying device.
In the known apparatus of this kind which have been implemented in practice, the stacks are taken off the stack conveying device by hand in the take-off station. The object of German Offenlegungsschrift (published patent application) 3,026,494 is to enable fully automatic operation by using a rotary-table-like stack conveying device.